I broke camp in the morning after I took a quick shower. Good thing about staying at KOA are the showers I guess. I felt like I was back in the dorms. I packed up my car and made my way to St. Louis. I crossed the Mississippi and didn't even notice it. I was expecting more signage.
I parked at a garage and made my way to the Gateway Arch. My God, that thing is huge. It blew my mind. I had to got back about 200 yards just to get the entire thing in a picture. I traveled up to the top with a family of 4 from St. Louis. We got in and I made a comment about how the elevator pod was very 2001. It was by the way. It was a white circular pod which looked like an egg. I'm pretty sure I hit it on the nose. Anyways, the father looks at me and jokingly (but not really) laughs then says "Watch it, this is our city you're making fun of". So I laughed then said "Open the pod bay doors HAL". It was an awkward elevator ride after that. We got tot he top and I let some distance between us.
Once again that thing is huge. I mean I've seen plenty of pictures, but man we were really high. Looking out the windows you could see all of St. Louis. Coolest thing was you could see right into Busch Stadium. After a few minutes I got back in an elevator (this time by myself) and went back down. Took some pictures then went to find some coffee. I asked some dude where I could find some and he pointed to blocking he was standing outside of. There was a little coffee shop inside and I bought a cup. Walked around the corner then took a sip. Worst coffee ever. I felt like someone took some acorns out of a park, burnt them to a crisp, let a dog poop on them, then mixed it with used motor oil. $2 gone.
I got back to my car and drove straight to KS. Only made a stop for food and gas. It rained the entire trip through MO. I thought a tornado was going to take me away. As soon as I got to KS, though, rained stopped. KS was cool. Lots of rolling plains and 70 mph speed limit. Bitchin'. I got the Jeff's house and let myself in. His dog was going crazy so I took her for a walk.
Jeff got back from work shortly after and we went to the grocery store to by hamburger meat. Now Jeff had bought some hamburger a couple months back and had it frozen. But apparently there was an Ecoli recall for that meat so he brought it was us to return. He gave it to customer service and got his couple bucks back. We walk over to the meat to but some more hamburg and were making jokes about whether to buy the same brand. Meanwhile, so grocery store peon, walks up next to us and some hamburger on the shelf. We look over at it, it's the same hamburg Jeff just returned! He calls the guy over and tells him he just returned the meat because of the Ecoli recall. The guy says they told him it was good, even though the date on it was 6/16. Really, Dillions? Really? If I were Jeff, I'd find a new grocery store.
After dinner we went downtown to Aggieville with Jeff's friend Dante. Kansas State is right down the street from Jeff, so theres a pretty big college atmosphere here. Aggieville is like a large downtown Durham. Looks of bars and small eateries. We sit outside at a bar and start drinking our beers and talking. Dante is a straight-shooter. He'll speak his mind with care of rudeness. So we're talking and these two girls sit down and one says "I'm going to interrupt you is that alright?" and Dante says "No, that's rude. We're talking." So the girls get up in a big huff and leave. Meanwhile we're like whatever, they weren't attractive anyways. I run off to the bathroom later and walk by the girls talking about us and how we're wicked rude. I mention it to Dante and we need talk him out of reaming that out. Later he gets up to go the bathroom and the one girl gives him the finger. He goes off and starts walking on the table and arguments ensue. The basic problem here is the girl's boyfriend is a complete idiot. In his mind if a girl wants to interupt a conversion, that is her right because she is a girl, and out of common respect the guys should stop talking and let her. I'm sorry dude, but if tow people are talking and someone walks up, boy or girl, its rude to interupt any conversion. Needless to say this conversion got pretty heated and I just kept calling the guy a complete idiot for what he was saying. This went on for atleast 20 minutes before we finally just left. Jeff had PT in the morning pretty early so it was a good out. Pretty good trip to the bar, thanks Jeff.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Day 7: Chicago, IL to Granite City, IL
My only single state trip and it was the worst. It started out by trying to find a sterno stove for my camp that night. Apparently in IL, they have a different definition of down the street. Long story short, it took me 2 hours and a lot of stores to find a sterno stove. I went from ACE to Home Depot to Sports Authority (doesn't exist BTW) then finally Dick's (it was two-stories and had everything). Now that it is 11 o'clock I started my 6 hour drive to Granite City.
The drive blew. Really hot. Burnt my driving arm. No scenery. After the drive I was done. I want to take a plane to Vegas. I stopped at another oddball attraction. I think I'm done with those too. Giant Abe Lincoln on a giant wagon. I'm doing straight shots from here on out.
I got to the Public Park in Granite City and found the campgrounds. There were a few locals there and I got a big whiff of deliverance. Being by myself I kept driving and made my way to a KOA camp. KOA is pretty much the Holiday Inn of campgrounds. Nothing special but it's safe, somewhat clean place. I set my tent up under an aluminum pavalion since it was supposed to downpour at night (never did). I got there at 5 and was incredibly bored. I left my laptop cable in Chicago so I lost my plan of watching a movie. Instead I started reading Angels and Demons, still don't like it but I forgot my Chuck book in Manchester. I also forgot to put my video podcasts on my iPod so that was out. So I read for a little bit, went swimming in the pool, shot some hoops, then called it a night at around 10. When all else fails, I guess sleep is an option. But after a long grueling day I thought it was justified. Next time though, I'm picking up beer.
The drive blew. Really hot. Burnt my driving arm. No scenery. After the drive I was done. I want to take a plane to Vegas. I stopped at another oddball attraction. I think I'm done with those too. Giant Abe Lincoln on a giant wagon. I'm doing straight shots from here on out.
I got to the Public Park in Granite City and found the campgrounds. There were a few locals there and I got a big whiff of deliverance. Being by myself I kept driving and made my way to a KOA camp. KOA is pretty much the Holiday Inn of campgrounds. Nothing special but it's safe, somewhat clean place. I set my tent up under an aluminum pavalion since it was supposed to downpour at night (never did). I got there at 5 and was incredibly bored. I left my laptop cable in Chicago so I lost my plan of watching a movie. Instead I started reading Angels and Demons, still don't like it but I forgot my Chuck book in Manchester. I also forgot to put my video podcasts on my iPod so that was out. So I read for a little bit, went swimming in the pool, shot some hoops, then called it a night at around 10. When all else fails, I guess sleep is an option. But after a long grueling day I thought it was justified. Next time though, I'm picking up beer.
Day 6: Chicago, IL
Today was an adventure. I hope you have your walking shoes on because I'm taking you with me on my journey around Chi-Town. And I forgot my camera so put your reading glasses on because I'll be writing a lot.
The day began by waking up at 6, so I could take the Metra into Chicago with Mo on her way to work. She works at Hyatt in downtown Chicago. We got into Union Station and it was already hustling. Businessmen running with briefcases. Little kids crying it's too early. Homeless people asking for change. It was ca-razy. Mo and I walked to Millenium Park where we parted ways and weren't to meet for another 13 hours.
First order of business ... coffee. Eat it eyes, I need my coffee. Magically a DD popped up and I hit it hard. Large coffee and a bagel that I will enjoy on the waterfront (but really in the park because the waterfront was too far away and I was too hungry). After finding a non-homeless person area I ate my bagel with a great intensity, leaving a sesame seed path of destruction, I made my way to the Buckingham Fountain. It looked a lot like the one in Philly in the beginning of Married with Children and Always Sunny. I sat with some homeless peeps and stared for a while sipping my coffee, which hit me quickly. I ran to the public bathroom and immediately turned around after seeing two men showering in the sinks. I sucke it up and started walking to the Museums.
After about a mile walk I got the Planetarium with overlooks the skyline from the Lake. It was pretty cool. I snapped some virtual pictures and took a little break in the shade. Then I quickly remember about my bathroom sit. and continues on my way. I think I snuck into the Planetarium because on my way out I passed people taking tickets. I'm such a rebel.
By now it was around 10 and I had tons to do. My first and only tourist trip I did in the city was an Architecture boat ride, which was docked on the complete opposite side of the city. I walked along the lakefront looking at the boats taking off, hoping one might stop and take me aboard for the day. No dice. About two miles later I made it to the docks and got on the 11 o'clock trip. The ride was wicked cool. The boat travels up the branches of the Chicago River pointing out history and architecture types of the different style of buildings scattered about Chicago. Only shitty thing was the tourguide. He starts off by introducing himself. He's from Chicago and has three years of Architecture from IIT. What that tells me is that he is a college dropout who couldn't finish his Architecture degree and now he wants to talk to me about Architecture. Awesome. Then he started giving his opinions of how they should approach design problems in buildings. But he "doesn't have a billion dollars so that won't listen to him". Well it's probably more because you don't have a degree, buddy. Anyways the trip was still awesome and I'm glad I did it. It was a cool way to see the city.
Next stop was lunch, but not before a quick cat nap at the Navy Pier. It was a good nap. Not much else I have to say there. I got up around 12:30 and went to lunch at the Billy Goat Tavern. It's famous from the early years of SNL, with a John Belushi sketch (cheezeburga, cheezeburga, cheezeburga) If you don't know it, look it up. Cheezeburga was delicious. I got a double. I got some Billy Goat Lager, which I'm pretty sure was Bud Light, then tried the Billy Goat Dark, much better.
I left and was feeling kind of buzzed and thought I could walk to Wrigley. Mo said take the L, but whatever, I'm from Boston I know better, right. I got to Lincoln Park and my buzz wore off and I had to pee badly and there was no L in sight. About 40 minutes later I found some bar to pee in and got directed to an L station. Somewhere along the line I crossed the Red Line and got to the Brown Line (I needed the Red Line). So a couple line switches and I made it to Wrigley. Pretty awesome stadium . . . from the outside. I walked around the block, snapped a pic or two on my phone then got back on the L. Wicked anti-climatic.
I got back to downtown and collapsed at the Vietnam Memorial. It was about 4 and Mo was getting out of work soon so I thought I'd wait the rest of the day out there, watching some hot foreign girls take pictures of each other out of the corner of my eyes. I got a call from Mo saying she'd be busy until 7:30. I thought, perfect time to drink. So after the foreign girls left, there was nothing left for me there and I made my way to the restaurant in Millennium Park. I sat down at the bar and got a giant beer and started talking to guys next to me. They were lawyers / bartenders. Did Cocktail take place in Chicago? They were roommates with the bartender serving us. I picked a good seat. I talked with them for a while, telling them about my journey so far, and the bought me a Margarita. They pointed out my Boston accent (which I wasn't away I had, but apparently comes out after a tall beer and Margarita).
They had to take off so I turned my attention to the kids on the other side. They were from all over the globe (Tenn., Ireland, Russia, etc.), working internships at an environmental firm. I talked to them for a bit until Mo got there and the Irish kid started hitting on her. Eventually we called it a day and caught a cab back to Union Station where we caught the train with no time to spare. The doors literally closed as soon as we stepped into the train.
Now I love Chicago and wouldn't mind living there. Or at least visiting it again. Hopefully I get the chance. Thanks to Mo and Cara for their hospitality.
The day began by waking up at 6, so I could take the Metra into Chicago with Mo on her way to work. She works at Hyatt in downtown Chicago. We got into Union Station and it was already hustling. Businessmen running with briefcases. Little kids crying it's too early. Homeless people asking for change. It was ca-razy. Mo and I walked to Millenium Park where we parted ways and weren't to meet for another 13 hours.
First order of business ... coffee. Eat it eyes, I need my coffee. Magically a DD popped up and I hit it hard. Large coffee and a bagel that I will enjoy on the waterfront (but really in the park because the waterfront was too far away and I was too hungry). After finding a non-homeless person area I ate my bagel with a great intensity, leaving a sesame seed path of destruction, I made my way to the Buckingham Fountain. It looked a lot like the one in Philly in the beginning of Married with Children and Always Sunny. I sat with some homeless peeps and stared for a while sipping my coffee, which hit me quickly. I ran to the public bathroom and immediately turned around after seeing two men showering in the sinks. I sucke it up and started walking to the Museums.
After about a mile walk I got the Planetarium with overlooks the skyline from the Lake. It was pretty cool. I snapped some virtual pictures and took a little break in the shade. Then I quickly remember about my bathroom sit. and continues on my way. I think I snuck into the Planetarium because on my way out I passed people taking tickets. I'm such a rebel.
By now it was around 10 and I had tons to do. My first and only tourist trip I did in the city was an Architecture boat ride, which was docked on the complete opposite side of the city. I walked along the lakefront looking at the boats taking off, hoping one might stop and take me aboard for the day. No dice. About two miles later I made it to the docks and got on the 11 o'clock trip. The ride was wicked cool. The boat travels up the branches of the Chicago River pointing out history and architecture types of the different style of buildings scattered about Chicago. Only shitty thing was the tourguide. He starts off by introducing himself. He's from Chicago and has three years of Architecture from IIT. What that tells me is that he is a college dropout who couldn't finish his Architecture degree and now he wants to talk to me about Architecture. Awesome. Then he started giving his opinions of how they should approach design problems in buildings. But he "doesn't have a billion dollars so that won't listen to him". Well it's probably more because you don't have a degree, buddy. Anyways the trip was still awesome and I'm glad I did it. It was a cool way to see the city.
Next stop was lunch, but not before a quick cat nap at the Navy Pier. It was a good nap. Not much else I have to say there. I got up around 12:30 and went to lunch at the Billy Goat Tavern. It's famous from the early years of SNL, with a John Belushi sketch (cheezeburga, cheezeburga, cheezeburga) If you don't know it, look it up. Cheezeburga was delicious. I got a double. I got some Billy Goat Lager, which I'm pretty sure was Bud Light, then tried the Billy Goat Dark, much better.
I left and was feeling kind of buzzed and thought I could walk to Wrigley. Mo said take the L, but whatever, I'm from Boston I know better, right. I got to Lincoln Park and my buzz wore off and I had to pee badly and there was no L in sight. About 40 minutes later I found some bar to pee in and got directed to an L station. Somewhere along the line I crossed the Red Line and got to the Brown Line (I needed the Red Line). So a couple line switches and I made it to Wrigley. Pretty awesome stadium . . . from the outside. I walked around the block, snapped a pic or two on my phone then got back on the L. Wicked anti-climatic.
I got back to downtown and collapsed at the Vietnam Memorial. It was about 4 and Mo was getting out of work soon so I thought I'd wait the rest of the day out there, watching some hot foreign girls take pictures of each other out of the corner of my eyes. I got a call from Mo saying she'd be busy until 7:30. I thought, perfect time to drink. So after the foreign girls left, there was nothing left for me there and I made my way to the restaurant in Millennium Park. I sat down at the bar and got a giant beer and started talking to guys next to me. They were lawyers / bartenders. Did Cocktail take place in Chicago? They were roommates with the bartender serving us. I picked a good seat. I talked with them for a while, telling them about my journey so far, and the bought me a Margarita. They pointed out my Boston accent (which I wasn't away I had, but apparently comes out after a tall beer and Margarita).
They had to take off so I turned my attention to the kids on the other side. They were from all over the globe (Tenn., Ireland, Russia, etc.), working internships at an environmental firm. I talked to them for a bit until Mo got there and the Irish kid started hitting on her. Eventually we called it a day and caught a cab back to Union Station where we caught the train with no time to spare. The doors literally closed as soon as we stepped into the train.
Now I love Chicago and wouldn't mind living there. Or at least visiting it again. Hopefully I get the chance. Thanks to Mo and Cara for their hospitality.
Day 5: Cleveland, OH to Chicag, IL
Sorry for the really late entries, everybody. I left my laptop power cable in Chicago. I won't get it back until I get to Vegas. So until then don't expect daily blog entries. It's been a while since Day 5 so I'll try to remember to the best of my ability.
Sunday morning I had a quick breakfast from Chez Javorek and started my trip to Chicago. Not all that bad of a drive. I got a call from my friend Mo and she said I could stay with her. Goodbye sketchy hostel, hello suburban neighborhood. No oddball tourist stops on the way, so I busted through Ohio in no time and got to Illinois. Once in the IL I hit tons of road work. Seriously, I think there is a memo out there telling cities to slow me down. I got close and gave Mo a call. She was playing softball and told me to meet her at the game at the 55th and Grant. I heard 55th and Grand, though. Apparently it exists. What are the chances. I was driving around a suburban neighborhood for a few minutes before the situation clarified itself. Luckily Grant was only a couple blocks away.
After meeting up with Mo we went to meet her friends (and softball team) at this ginormous hot dog restaurant. It was about as big as an Olive Garden (I think that's huge for a hot dog store). After meeting Mo's sister for approximately 20 seconds, I had her order for me to get me the best meal. And she did. Cheesey fries ... delicious. Shake ... to die for. Hot dog ... fantastic. Although I got some turned heads when I ordered ketchup on it. Chicagoans don't like that.
Rest of the day was slow. Went back to Mo's house. Looked at maps for a while then watched the Red Sox game. Another quiet day, but thats what I needed for the next day's adventure.
Sunday morning I had a quick breakfast from Chez Javorek and started my trip to Chicago. Not all that bad of a drive. I got a call from my friend Mo and she said I could stay with her. Goodbye sketchy hostel, hello suburban neighborhood. No oddball tourist stops on the way, so I busted through Ohio in no time and got to Illinois. Once in the IL I hit tons of road work. Seriously, I think there is a memo out there telling cities to slow me down. I got close and gave Mo a call. She was playing softball and told me to meet her at the game at the 55th and Grant. I heard 55th and Grand, though. Apparently it exists. What are the chances. I was driving around a suburban neighborhood for a few minutes before the situation clarified itself. Luckily Grant was only a couple blocks away.
After meeting up with Mo we went to meet her friends (and softball team) at this ginormous hot dog restaurant. It was about as big as an Olive Garden (I think that's huge for a hot dog store). After meeting Mo's sister for approximately 20 seconds, I had her order for me to get me the best meal. And she did. Cheesey fries ... delicious. Shake ... to die for. Hot dog ... fantastic. Although I got some turned heads when I ordered ketchup on it. Chicagoans don't like that.
Rest of the day was slow. Went back to Mo's house. Looked at maps for a while then watched the Red Sox game. Another quiet day, but thats what I needed for the next day's adventure.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Day 4: Cleveland, OH to Chicago, IL
Slow day today. Not much to report. The day started with a 6 hour drive to Chicago, where I met my friend Mo from college. She lives in Hinsdale, just outside of Chicago. The drive was quick. I didn't really think about. The thing about my GPS (aka Gwen) is that when I use it I have no idea what route I am taking. I just follow the directions. Therefore I could not tell how got to where I am now, but I'm here.
I met Mo after her softball game and went out to eat with her friends (also her teammates) at a really tasty hot dog place. Mo's sister pretty much ordered for me. Within meeting her for a minute she told what to get and it was delicious. I got a hot dog, cheese fries and a chocolate shake. My hot dog had ketchup and onions on it. Apparently that's a huge no-no in Chi-town. No ketchup on your dog. You'll get a large slap on the wrist and probably pretty bad stink eye.
After hot dogs we came back to Mo's house and looked at maps of Chicago for a while, trying to figure my game plan out for tomorrow. I'd tell you what it is but I don't want to ruin tomorrows post. Since I'm going into the city tomorrow, I'm staying an extra day. So I won't be leaving until Tuesday morning.
Now I'm sitting around watching the Red Sox dominate the Yankees (knocking on wood). Like I said, slow day. Tomorrow, however, will be an adventure.
I met Mo after her softball game and went out to eat with her friends (also her teammates) at a really tasty hot dog place. Mo's sister pretty much ordered for me. Within meeting her for a minute she told what to get and it was delicious. I got a hot dog, cheese fries and a chocolate shake. My hot dog had ketchup and onions on it. Apparently that's a huge no-no in Chi-town. No ketchup on your dog. You'll get a large slap on the wrist and probably pretty bad stink eye.
After hot dogs we came back to Mo's house and looked at maps of Chicago for a while, trying to figure my game plan out for tomorrow. I'd tell you what it is but I don't want to ruin tomorrows post. Since I'm going into the city tomorrow, I'm staying an extra day. So I won't be leaving until Tuesday morning.
Now I'm sitting around watching the Red Sox dominate the Yankees (knocking on wood). Like I said, slow day. Tomorrow, however, will be an adventure.
Day 3: Still in Ohio
I spent today in Ohio again, hanging out with Bryan and pretty much taking it easy before I hit the road again. In the morning we went to town over called Chagrin. Chagrin pretty much reminds me of a small Dover. It's a good thing I wasn't staying here too much longer because I'd start to miss the NH seacoast. The town was very quaint and a had a small water fall going through the middle, similar, but smaller, to Dover. We got some bagels then headed back to Bryan's house.
After a quick shower we headed back into the C-town to see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The building is wicked cool. Bryan's dad said that from above it's supposed to look like a record player. Knowing that I was about to see what each part of the building and the area around was. There's a circular part of the building that juts out, which is the needle, and there's a large flag pole in the courtyard which is the spindle. Very cool. Walking up to doors there were huge lines. I wieghed my options and decided not go in. I figure I can see similar memobrialia in a Hard Rock Cafe.
So we walked around a little longer around the lake front then went to
the Flats to get some lunch. The Flats used to be an area down by the river that had some restaurants and bars but was kind of run down. Now the Flats are just run down. We found a restuarant called Shooters which was alright. Big place right on the water. While we were eating a giant 100 yard barge got pulled by a tugboat down the narrow Cuyahoga River. After lunch we headed back to the Casa de Javorek.
Back at the house Bryan left for his softball doubleheader so I lounged around the back yard and went swimming a little bit. The rest of the day follows a similar trend. It was relaxing and peaceful and nice not to be rushing around (which the rest of the week will be like). A week from today I will be in Vegas, though, where I can empty out my car and continue to CA with a lighter load. Tomorrow: Chicago.
After a quick shower we headed back into the C-town to see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The building is wicked cool. Bryan's dad said that from above it's supposed to look like a record player. Knowing that I was about to see what each part of the building and the area around was. There's a circular part of the building that juts out, which is the needle, and there's a large flag pole in the courtyard which is the spindle. Very cool. Walking up to doors there were huge lines. I wieghed my options and decided not go in. I figure I can see similar memobrialia in a Hard Rock Cafe.
So we walked around a little longer around the lake front then went to the Flats to get some lunch. The Flats used to be an area down by the river that had some restaurants and bars but was kind of run down. Now the Flats are just run down. We found a restuarant called Shooters which was alright. Big place right on the water. While we were eating a giant 100 yard barge got pulled by a tugboat down the narrow Cuyahoga River. After lunch we headed back to the Casa de Javorek.Back at the house Bryan left for his softball doubleheader so I lounged around the back yard and went swimming a little bit. The rest of the day follows a similar trend. It was relaxing and peaceful and nice not to be rushing around (which the rest of the week will be like). A week from today I will be in Vegas, though, where I can empty out my car and continue to CA with a lighter load. Tomorrow: Chicago.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Day 2: Niagara Falls, NY to Cleveland, OH
Let me preface by saying Day 2 was a million times better than Day 1. If the trip continues like this, I can claim it as a success. The day started with an initial check to make sure my car was still outside my room with all my possessions. I quickly showered packed up my car and made my way to Niagara Falls National Park. Oh what a relief it was to get out of Niagara, NY. It is such a crappy town that smells like b
urnt rubber. I originally thought the smell was my fan belt and freaked out a little bit. But really, if I assumed every strange smell in NY was coming from car, I would have a goat in my backseat and a dump on my windshield. Needless to say, my car was fine.
The first stop was Niagara Falls National Park. I got there early enough to catch the first ride of the day on the Maid of the Mist. They should really call it "Take a Shower in Niagara Falls Boat", though. They give you this trash bag poncho to wear that has a head hole big enough for Naoufal. So over my tiny head the water drips
down and I came out looking like I just ran the Ironman, without the sweaty locker room smell though. I tried tacking a picture of the waterfalls with my ninja, Reginauld Von Hidgewit (this is what happens when you drive across the country my yourself). However the size difference made the picture impossible to take and I had to bail on my traveling gnome rip off. Visiting sites by yourself apparently makes a desiginated picture taker. I think about 5 or 6 groups had me take pictures of them. I wanted to reciprocate, but asking someone to take a picture of only me seemed a little odd.
Leaving Niagara Falls was awesome since it meant I was this close (imagine to fingers real close together) to leaving NY. You know those shirts that say I
Next stop was in Austenburg, OH. Giant rocking chair. See the picture. Yeah that's what I saw. Next story.
3 hours later I made it Cleveland. A quick drive is exactly what I needed. I met Bryan at his house in Chesterland which seemes exactly like NE. Winging roads. Hills. Cornhole games?!? (ummm maybe in northern NH). Bryan's house is awesome. Like a little relaxing paradise in the back yard and big comfortable living room. I'm glad I'm staying the entire weekend. After visiting for a short bit we left to go into Cleveland to see the Inginuity Festival, aka Knowledgefest. It was defintely nice sitting in the passenger seat, mainly because I had a chance to even out my truckers tan (my left 
arm is pretty much 4 shades darker than my right). We met his sister, Amy, a town over and headed into C-town. We walked around a little bit and saw tower city (pretty cool), key tower (pretty tall), and the free stamp (pretty effin outrageously cool). I like to think of the free stamp as a staple of Cleveland. (That's two giant objects in one day, how many have you seen?)
We got to Knowledgefest and had our minds blown. Not really but it was pretty cool. There was a FIRST league that was setting up. A talking robot called Quasi (No idea how it worked but it was wicked amazing). The highlight, though, was a guy on stilts who had a the deepest bag of dance moves. He only used one move but I think he was just saving the others for the rest of the weekend.
Moving on from Knowledgefest it was time for the Indians game. I was blown away by the stadium. It was nice to see how a baseball stadium looks that was built to hold fans. Very nice. Very clean. Lots of walking room. Still doesnt beat Fenway but it was still amazing. Great game, too. Indians jumped to 5-0 lead, but the Twins came back in the end for a 5-4 close finish. It was a nail biter, but the Indians prevailed to take them out of last place in the division. After the game there was a fireworks show which was pretty sweet, as well.
All in all, I had a great day. Short drive and a baseball game. Thanks to Bryan and Amy for showing me a great time. One more day in Ohio, probably filled with relaxation (I'm writing this blog on the next day and it is filled with that but I want it to seem like it was yesterday so just go with it). Now I know why Liz Lemon wanted to escape to C-town.
P.S. Reginauld escaped from my pocket. I think he loved C-town a little too much. Good travels to you sir, I enjoyed the time we shared.
urnt rubber. I originally thought the smell was my fan belt and freaked out a little bit. But really, if I assumed every strange smell in NY was coming from car, I would have a goat in my backseat and a dump on my windshield. Needless to say, my car was fine.The first stop was Niagara Falls National Park. I got there early enough to catch the first ride of the day on the Maid of the Mist. They should really call it "Take a Shower in Niagara Falls Boat", though. They give you this trash bag poncho to wear that has a head hole big enough for Naoufal. So over my tiny head the water drips
down and I came out looking like I just ran the Ironman, without the sweaty locker room smell though. I tried tacking a picture of the waterfalls with my ninja, Reginauld Von Hidgewit (this is what happens when you drive across the country my yourself). However the size difference made the picture impossible to take and I had to bail on my traveling gnome rip off. Visiting sites by yourself apparently makes a desiginated picture taker. I think about 5 or 6 groups had me take pictures of them. I wanted to reciprocate, but asking someone to take a picture of only me seemed a little odd.Leaving Niagara Falls was awesome since it meant I was this close (imagine to fingers real close together) to leaving NY. You know those shirts that say I
Next stop was in Austenburg, OH. Giant rocking chair. See the picture. Yeah that's what I saw. Next story.
3 hours later I made it Cleveland. A quick drive is exactly what I needed. I met Bryan at his house in Chesterland which seemes exactly like NE. Winging roads. Hills. Cornhole games?!? (ummm maybe in northern NH). Bryan's house is awesome. Like a little relaxing paradise in the back yard and big comfortable living room. I'm glad I'm staying the entire weekend. After visiting for a short bit we left to go into Cleveland to see the Inginuity Festival, aka Knowledgefest. It was defintely nice sitting in the passenger seat, mainly because I had a chance to even out my truckers tan (my left 
arm is pretty much 4 shades darker than my right). We met his sister, Amy, a town over and headed into C-town. We walked around a little bit and saw tower city (pretty cool), key tower (pretty tall), and the free stamp (pretty effin outrageously cool). I like to think of the free stamp as a staple of Cleveland. (That's two giant objects in one day, how many have you seen?)We got to Knowledgefest and had our minds blown. Not really but it was pretty cool. There was a FIRST league that was setting up. A talking robot called Quasi (No idea how it worked but it was wicked amazing). The highlight, though, was a guy on stilts who had a the deepest bag of dance moves. He only used one move but I think he was just saving the others for the rest of the weekend.
Moving on from Knowledgefest it was time for the Indians game. I was blown away by the stadium. It was nice to see how a baseball stadium looks that was built to hold fans. Very nice. Very clean. Lots of walking room. Still doesnt beat Fenway but it was still amazing. Great game, too. Indians jumped to 5-0 lead, but the Twins came back in the end for a 5-4 close finish. It was a nail biter, but the Indians prevailed to take them out of last place in the division. After the game there was a fireworks show which was pretty sweet, as well.
All in all, I had a great day. Short drive and a baseball game. Thanks to Bryan and Amy for showing me a great time. One more day in Ohio, probably filled with relaxation (I'm writing this blog on the next day and it is filled with that but I want it to seem like it was yesterday so just go with it). Now I know why Liz Lemon wanted to escape to C-town.
P.S. Reginauld escaped from my pocket. I think he loved C-town a little too much. Good travels to you sir, I enjoyed the time we shared.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Day 1: Manchester, NH to Niagara Falls, NY
Here was the plan. Pack the car for the most part last night, get up at 7, leave by 8, with a stop for lunch and gas, be in Niagara at my motel around 5ish. Here's what really happened....
The day started of on track, I got up at 7. This is where things start to stray from the plan. Apparently I ha decided to take alot more with me than I thought. It took a good hour and a half to finish the packing job I gave up on last night. I left quite a few key parts of my life at home, primarily my bed and TV. I can't wait to get a job then an apartment so I can get those vital lifelines back. 9 o'clock finally rolled around and I was putting the angry finishing touches on my car while standing in the rain. Oh the rain... I'll get to that in a bit. So 9 o'clock, I'm on the road. After a quick tank fill, the GPS says an arrival time of 4:15 (HA!).
First mistake of the trip: I was unaware of taking rt. 3 and bypassed the exit to 93. GPS quickly recalculates the path, no time time difference (lies, all lies). Apparently the government didn't get my letters of not doing construction until I leave. 93 had massive back ups due to construction leading to 1 lane. A quick GPS detour says to go to 495. Makes sense, 495 to Mass Pike. After an hour I finally get to Mass. I went by same crappy town that had a Child's Plaza with an adult bookstore. Good location, guys. I finally make it onto 495 after my GPS realizes I'm on a road too new to map. But hold on, some tractor trailer decided that straight highways weren't fun enough and decided to jump the median into the Southbound lane causing traffic to stop completely. http://www.thebostonchannel.com/mostpopular/16976224/detail.html (after reading that seeing someone died I feel a little bad about my last comment). After sitting with my thumb up my ass for 15 minutes, a cop came by and directed everyone off the highway. GPS detour again takes me 95. But theres plenty of traffic to get to rt. 128. One more detour (I swear), takes me back to rt 3 and onto 90 for smooth sailing. So far the GPS is in the doghouse.
Alright, I'm on the Mass Pike after and hour of traffic delays, but I'm ready to sail into NY. BAM. Terrential downpours. I thought I was going to die. After traveling at 35 mph I made it through. And just a mere 3.5 hours later I made it to NY. GPS says time of arrival is now 6. The plan was to stop at the welcome center and eat lunch. Too bad NY is a huge jerk and doesn't have one on 90. "Continue on I-90 for 209 miles." The first stop is an hour into NY. Lunch at 1:30, great.
Last night I looked up some roadside attractions. I decided on two. The world's smallest church in Odieda and a two-story outhouse in Phelps. With the crazy traffic I decided I could only see one, although I forgot to write down the address. So I headed to the next rest stop with WiFi, but not before I get stuck in another torrential downpour. When I get to the rest stop, I go inside and sit down in front of a TV (it had been like 15 hours and I was getting withdrawals). The news
was on talking about the Epsom and Durham getting attack by tornadoes (hope you guys are alright and still made it to Hilltop Fun Center). I told the guy watching I came from there this morning (a little white lie never killed anyone). Regardless, he could have cared less and gave me a dirty look, probably because of my Red Sox hat.
I plugged the address for the two-story outhouse in and followed it to nowhereville, NY. I got to address and didn't see anything. I looped around the block and realized it was inside a close museum. With apriori knowledge of what it looked like (a brick tower), I don't know what I was expecting. But if I hadn't known this, I would have thought there was a two story two on the back of this lame-ass museum.
Back onto 90, ETA is now 6:25. Another torrential downpour (this time featuring lightning) pushes it to 6:30. I'm at the point now where I just want to get to my motel and relax. 6:30 rolls around and I finally make it to ...... what looks like a fort I made behind my garage when I was 12. I make a good decision and turn around to get a room at the Days Inn across the street. Good intentions don't seem to work well for me. The only vacant rooms are a king suite and double queen. Each for $110. Too much and I decided to try my luck back and the shanty motel. I pull up and 2 guys, 1 in a jumpsuit and the other in overalls walk out of a trashed room with tipped over furniture. Apparently they work there. After 3 attempts to find me a new room because they misplaced the key for the room I reserved I started to have more doubts about staying there. But I continued on. The kicker was once he gave up finding a room, he said he would let me in and if I left I would need to find him to get back into the room. I immediately left the lobby that was full of flies.
So now I'm in my half-way decent motel room. Too discouraged to go out in this crappy town. I'm going to eat a sandwich and junkfood for dinner then bring all my valuables inside. On the agenda tonight is probably watch a movie on my laptop. If it's nice out tomorrow morning I'll go see Niagara Falls and take some pictures. If it's as shitty as it was today I'm heading straight to Cleveland to stay with Bryan.
Scale of 1 to 10, I'd give today a 5 capped with a 2. This trip can only get better (knock on wood)
The day started of on track, I got up at 7. This is where things start to stray from the plan. Apparently I ha decided to take alot more with me than I thought. It took a good hour and a half to finish the packing job I gave up on last night. I left quite a few key parts of my life at home, primarily my bed and TV. I can't wait to get a job then an apartment so I can get those vital lifelines back. 9 o'clock finally rolled around and I was putting the angry finishing touches on my car while standing in the rain. Oh the rain... I'll get to that in a bit. So 9 o'clock, I'm on the road. After a quick tank fill, the GPS says an arrival time of 4:15 (HA!).First mistake of the trip: I was unaware of taking rt. 3 and bypassed the exit to 93. GPS quickly recalculates the path, no time time difference (lies, all lies). Apparently the government didn't get my letters of not doing construction until I leave. 93 had massive back ups due to construction leading to 1 lane. A quick GPS detour says to go to 495. Makes sense, 495 to Mass Pike. After an hour I finally get to Mass. I went by same crappy town that had a Child's Plaza with an adult bookstore. Good location, guys. I finally make it onto 495 after my GPS realizes I'm on a road too new to map. But hold on, some tractor trailer decided that straight highways weren't fun enough and decided to jump the median into the Southbound lane causing traffic to stop completely. http://www.thebostonchannel.com/mostpopular/16976224/detail.html (after reading that seeing someone died I feel a little bad about my last comment). After sitting with my thumb up my ass for 15 minutes, a cop came by and directed everyone off the highway. GPS detour again takes me 95. But theres plenty of traffic to get to rt. 128. One more detour (I swear), takes me back to rt 3 and onto 90 for smooth sailing. So far the GPS is in the doghouse.
Alright, I'm on the Mass Pike after and hour of traffic delays, but I'm ready to sail into NY. BAM. Terrential downpours. I thought I was going to die. After traveling at 35 mph I made it through. And just a mere 3.5 hours later I made it to NY. GPS says time of arrival is now 6. The plan was to stop at the welcome center and eat lunch. Too bad NY is a huge jerk and doesn't have one on 90. "Continue on I-90 for 209 miles." The first stop is an hour into NY. Lunch at 1:30, great.
Last night I looked up some roadside attractions. I decided on two. The world's smallest church in Odieda and a two-story outhouse in Phelps. With the crazy traffic I decided I could only see one, although I forgot to write down the address. So I headed to the next rest stop with WiFi, but not before I get stuck in another torrential downpour. When I get to the rest stop, I go inside and sit down in front of a TV (it had been like 15 hours and I was getting withdrawals). The news
was on talking about the Epsom and Durham getting attack by tornadoes (hope you guys are alright and still made it to Hilltop Fun Center). I told the guy watching I came from there this morning (a little white lie never killed anyone). Regardless, he could have cared less and gave me a dirty look, probably because of my Red Sox hat.I plugged the address for the two-story outhouse in and followed it to nowhereville, NY. I got to address and didn't see anything. I looped around the block and realized it was inside a close museum. With apriori knowledge of what it looked like (a brick tower), I don't know what I was expecting. But if I hadn't known this, I would have thought there was a two story two on the back of this lame-ass museum.
Back onto 90, ETA is now 6:25. Another torrential downpour (this time featuring lightning) pushes it to 6:30. I'm at the point now where I just want to get to my motel and relax. 6:30 rolls around and I finally make it to ...... what looks like a fort I made behind my garage when I was 12. I make a good decision and turn around to get a room at the Days Inn across the street. Good intentions don't seem to work well for me. The only vacant rooms are a king suite and double queen. Each for $110. Too much and I decided to try my luck back and the shanty motel. I pull up and 2 guys, 1 in a jumpsuit and the other in overalls walk out of a trashed room with tipped over furniture. Apparently they work there. After 3 attempts to find me a new room because they misplaced the key for the room I reserved I started to have more doubts about staying there. But I continued on. The kicker was once he gave up finding a room, he said he would let me in and if I left I would need to find him to get back into the room. I immediately left the lobby that was full of flies.So now I'm in my half-way decent motel room. Too discouraged to go out in this crappy town. I'm going to eat a sandwich and junkfood for dinner then bring all my valuables inside. On the agenda tonight is probably watch a movie on my laptop. If it's nice out tomorrow morning I'll go see Niagara Falls and take some pictures. If it's as shitty as it was today I'm heading straight to Cleveland to stay with Bryan.
Scale of 1 to 10, I'd give today a 5 capped with a 2. This trip can only get better (knock on wood)
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